A Magical Spring

Outside the sun is shining, the flowers are blooming, cardinals are flying, bees are buzzing, the eggs are hatching, it is so beautiful. It has been a Magical Spring! Celebrating Easter was such a great reminder of why we all have reason to have such an incredible joy and hope within us!

We as a family had a great time down in Florida for Spring Training! We met so many great people and made some very sweet friendships! We had family come visit and we all got to do some of the touristy things that Orlando has to offer. To name a few, catch an Orlando Magic Game, sit on an alligator, and meet President Bush Senior (Ace even ate some of his popcorn), and watch a lot of good baseball! Here are some pictures of our fun Spring!






Casey had such an awesome Spring! He did so incredibly well!!! We are so very proud of him regardless of what he does on the field however he was lights out! :) It was so much fun watching him out there on the mound, so confident, so committed, and so determined! It seems unfathomable that he didn't make the Astros after his terrific spring. Yes, Unbelievable! But as we know the Lord has a plan and we are praying for only His will. My dad sent me this the other day and it is what gives us peace.

"If you are leading your life according to Gods will...then no matter what the situation good or bad...it's exactly where God wants you to be."



I have such great admiration and respect for my "Big Ace!" He continues to plug away, knowing this is exactly where God wants him to be! Daily he is an example for me and our family! He will be starting out with the Round Rock Express and waiting for whatever the Lord has in store.
Thank you for all of your love and support you have shown for Casey now and over the years! We are so incredibly grateful and appreciative. We have been overwhelmed and it has been such a blessing!

This last weekend was such a blast! Casey was able to be home in the spring for the first time in 10 years... the Lord works in mysterious ways! Louisiana is on the way from Florida to Texas, another blessing! ;) We were able to celebrate Easter and Casey's birthday in as Casey calls it, "God's Country!" We had so much fun with family & friends! A crawfish boil, fish fry (Casey catch), dying eggs, Mamaw's crawfish Ettoufee, gallons of sweet tea, Casey's fav yellow cake with chocolate icing (thanks Dee), and lots of fun! I have to admit I do realize why Casey is ever so proud and In Love with the great state of Louisiana!





We have SO much to be thankful for! Wishing you all a beautiful spring full of joy & hope!


Dream & Believe!
#27



PS SO excited for Baseball/Softball Season!!! Let's Play Ball!!!!

Capitol Hill supporting Physical Education

Last week I joined an incredible list of athletes and the Sporting Goods Manufacturing Assoc. for National Health through Fitness day. Our goal was to try to gain support for the Physical Education Bill. Thank you Mizuno for being so actively involved and allowing me to be a part of raising awareness for a great cause.

It was my 2nd time meeting with Congressmen & Women and Senators in our Capitol. The first time was with the Women's Sports Foundation trying to get support to keep Title IX alive. This time it was quite similar except the atmosphere was much more intense due to the state of the economy & health care.

Overall it was a huge success, we were able in the meetings state our concern for keeping Physical Education in Schools. I learned some pretty amazing facts preparing for our tour.

-Schools are now being built with out play grounds and gymnasiums
-1/3 of our country is Obese & another 1/3 is Overweight
-Kids are 3-4 times more likely to play sports if they are introduced to PE in school
-Kids test scores are higher when involved in sports
-It costs $746 dollars per 1,000 kids to participate in PE, around 75 cents a kid. A math book
averages $7 dollars a kid and some kids have a set of 2, 1 for home and 1 for school. Yet we
are cutting PE?
-For every $1 spent on PE the return is $3.20 long term (health bills & etc)

It is crucial we get our young kids active! I cannot express the importance of this. It is prevention, prevention of diabetes, obesity, self esteem, confidence, and so much more! We have to make it a point and invest in the future of this Country! So many skills from the classroom can be taught through PE, math, problem solving, and etc. We need to be creative and keep our kids moving! Kids aren't safe hanging in the neighborhood anymore, playing til the street lights come on. Most kids stay inside after school are on the computer or playing video games. Parents I want to encourage you to make it a point to join your kids and help them be active. Technology & Electronics have blessed us in so many ways but have cursed us in so many ways also. We have to unite and take a stand to help our kids, they are our future!

Trust me as a mom I know how TV and electronics simplify our lives and I too have to make a point to turn it off! So many times I find myself missing out on interacting with Ace because of electronics consuming him. We've been going on bike rides the last couple weeks and exploring the outdoors together, it has been so enjoyable! We love going to the playground too, meeting new people and playing outside. Let's all join in, get moving & get active!

It was so uplifting meeting so many in the Sporting Goods Industry and on Capitol Hill that are actively supporting this cause and trying to make a difference! I was honored to be a part of National Health Through Fitness Day! Let's all try to do our part and get our kids outside, active, and eating a more healthy balanced diet.

Dreaming & Believing in a brighter future!
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Each Minute, Each Breath, A Gift!

My world was rocked when hearing of precious LaylaGrace... she was called to be with Jesus this week. In her short life of 2 years, the Lord had HUGE plans for her, touching SO many all over the world.

My world was rocked again over a week ago hearing about a young beautiful talented girl taking her own life at 16 years old. Brianne Matthews was a shining star in our sport of softball. She was verbally committed to attend the University of Arizona. She was a 4.0 student. She had such a bright future... My heart aches for her and family.

I cannot imagine what these families are going through... I have been in tears & prayer for them both. In the midst of all of the pain, sadness, despair, and hurt, I am reminded the Lord is in control. I am reminded our time here on earth is so short. We are here one minute, gone in another. May we all make the best of it, cherish it, appreciate it, and love another! I know hearing about Layla Grace and Bre has rocked my world. Every minute, these last few weeks I am reminded what a gift it truly is.

Romans 5:3-5 ³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Jeremiah 29:11 ¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Dream & Believe,
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Sweet Precious Little Layla Grace

@LaylaGrace(via Twitter) has touched so so so very many lives, including mine. She has been on my heart since I heard her story. Please pray for her and her family.

Here is an article written on her that I felt compelled to share.

http://tinyurl.com/ydqef26

Less Shady Gray!

Everywhere you look around us and within us, we see compromise. We see that shady gray area and are being told Gray is okay. There are so many times in my life I have settled, I have compromised. I want to encourage and challenge us all to stand up for what is Right! I know I need to be more bold in many aspects of my life. It may not be the easy way but I believe the Lord will provide the strength and courage to not only get us through it but bless us in ways we cannot even imagine.

I received an email from a Sunday school teacher about a little girl who told on a classmate for having a hand gun at school. She was scared and not sure she did what was right. No way should this young girl have these feelings, if anything she is a hero and needs to be celebrated!

We as parents, leaders, and adults need to be the ones setting the example for our youth. If we as parents are lying, cheating, and slowly compromising, this is what we can expect from our children. I know I get this feeling in my gut, condemnation... I pray for the strength to do what is right in every situation, big or small. A lot of times we/I think it is okay to do in small situations or we/I try to justify our actions. Many times this is to get ahead in this life. I am reminded in

Matthew
²⁴Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me.²⁵If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.²⁶And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?

I am so grateful for my parents and grandparents showing us & letting us know/see the difference between Right and Wrong, Clean and Unclean, Pure and Impure! Yes, we/I will fall short but we need to know there is a difference between Right & Wrong! I pray, I can and will pass this along to Ace & others. I pray Ace knows the difference and lives it. I pray for more of that gut feeling to know, along with the strength to stand! We as a society need more of this and less Shady Gray!

Believing,
#27

U-S-A!!!!!

Watching the Olympics this week I have been filled with so much emotion! It is truly amazing! I am filled with such great pride, appreciation, gratitude, honor, passion, and love!

Love for our Country, Sports, Red White & Blue, People from all over the world, Competition, Dreams being a reality... so many things! One of my greatest memories is walking through the tunnel as 1, 1 Country, 1 team, into the birds nest in Beijing chanting U-S-A! I love what the Olympics represent and is, healthy competition among people from all over the world, we are all united. United by Sport. I loved walking through the athlete village and seeing athletes, all different shapes and colors from all over the world, wearing their Countries flags with such great pride! In the dining hall, all different types of food from all over the world! Competing against people who don't even speak your same language. Knowing how different we all are but how much in common we all have! I feel so incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity of being part of something so great, the Olympic Games!

Sports have been able to reunite the world, in a time were there is so much division. I hope you are enjoying the Olympics as much as I have this last week! Truly Amazing!

I remember standing on the podium with my teammates and being overwhelmed with gratitude! I couldn't help but think of all our servicemen & women and their families who have and are sacrificing so much. Thanks to them we were able to accomplish our dreams. I am so grateful for them allowing us and others to play, live, and have these great opportunities.

This picture is from last summer, I'm rounding the bases after Jenae Leles launched a home run vs Australia. But honestly, this is me this past week in front of the TV, screaming, cheering, rooting for USA! ...Minus the helmet & uni! :) In between the podium tears & tears of joy for the incredible individuals who have given so much and who are living out their dreams. I love the Olympics!

Along with knowing we have to fight to get this opportunity back for Softball in the future. For all the little ones who have The Olympic Dream.

Dreaming & Believing!
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Victory & Heartache! Super Bowl Recap

Watching the Superbowl my heart was elated for the Saints and Drew Brees but on the other hand I was aching for the Colts and Peyton Manning. I know the feeling before that Gold Medal game, or the Nat'l Championship game. You know there is going to be a winner and a loser in just a few hours. You know you will either walk back into your hotel room as a Champion or not. Its the feeling you train for, the place you want to be, you dream about being there your entire life!

It brought me back to my last 2 years of being a Wildcat. In 2001 (my junior year) we did it, finally! We sent 8 seniors out with a Championship, a ring, we achieved it! We were finally the ones jumping up and down on the field lifting the trophy high! This was a magical year, we were on a mission, we had an AMAZING team! I was undefeated this year on the mound... I can remember fighting the devil telling me in my ear, don't let this final game be your only & first loss of the year/season. I fought that the entire time trying to ignore those negative thoughts! I tried focusing on each pitch, each task, and most importantly battling for my team! We did it! We finally won! It was awesome we were playing UCLA, our biggest rival, our biggest competition back then. And we pulled it off 1-0! Finally the Champions!



Then came the next year 2002 (my senior year), we lost 8 seniors from 2001, I knew it was going to be a challenge getting back there let alone winning again! But we did it, we made it back, we were in the Championship game the following year. Just getting to that final game wasn't enough, we wanted to finish it, win it! Coach Candrea always says, "its tough to win a National Championship and even tougher to repeat!" But We were going to do it, we could it, I wanted nothing more than to prove that statement wrong! This time it ended the complete opposite way, we fell short, way short. Ouch, it hurt, hurt really bad. This isn't the way I wanted to end my career as a Wildcat. The score was brutal, my last game as a Wildcat was ugly. I was devastated and heartbroken. I can remember fighting the tears and losing the battle of holding them in.

After sitting in the dug out for what seemed like 2 hours, I finally gathered my stuff and made my way off the field. I was walking off of the Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City as a Wildcat for the last time and we/I fell short. The Lord used this time to speak to me and speak to me clearly. I didn't make it too far, I was immediately stopped at the gate. I couldn't even get out. All I wanted was my hotel room and bed so badly, to sit and sulk by myself. I then looked up and there was this enormous line wrapped around the stadium, no end in sight. The security guards asked me if I wanted to sign autographs. I replied, "Not really, but how can I say no to this line?" He said, "It's up to you?" I knew in my heart I had to sign, it was the right thing to do.

I dropped my bag and stayed there til the last girl received a signature. Through tears, I signed, I was there for hours... I was floored. I kept thinking we lost, I was the loser. Why are these people wanting my autograph? Through so many hugs and generous people encouraging me that day. It was such a gift! A gift from the Lord. He reminded me its not about winning or losing, its about touching lives, touching others! I received more mail from that day than our perfect season, Nat'l Champs, going 32-0, the previous year. So many sweet thoughtful letters about the way I handled the loss, thanking me for staying and signing. I was in awe and still am thinking about it today.

The Lord taught me a big lesson that day! It doesn't make the pain of a loss go away but He reminded me of my purpose. Its not about the trophies or medals, its about touching others, living out God's will! Trying to be a Champion even when we are not the Champ. Through Christ we are all Champions, Jesus died for our sins & our losses, we are able to gain the gift of eternity through His grace! We are fighting for the true prize, the nonperishable prize, the prize of eternity! As my Gold medal tarnishes and gets scratched, I cringe. I cringe and then chuckle... its the Lord reminding me yet again, there is more to it! The trophies & medals will one day fade away.

When I go back to Oklahoma City, it never fails, that line is brought up by someone. The longest line they had ever seen for "the loser!" Thank you Lord for using the losses & heartaches to help mold me and shape me. And Lord, just FYI I prefer winning! ;)

Dreaming & Believing,
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